Issue date: 10/17/07 Section: Verve

Originally Created: 10/16/07 at 11:58 PM CST
Last Updated: 10/16/07 at 11:56 PM CST

Media Credit: McKenzi Taylor [Click to enlarge]

As a fifth-year senior, Rob Garness has taken on his biggest and most challenging role as a theatre major at USD.

Garness, who is portraying George Milton from John Steinbeck's "Of Mice and Men," is approaching George in a way he hopes will capture the character as those who have read the novel imagine him to be and combining that with his own idea of the character.

His biggest fear when production time comes: he's going to disappoint someone in his portrayal of this beloved literary character.

All of Garness's hard work will be on stage for the first time Wednesday when the cast takes the stage for opening night at 7:30 p.m. in the Wayne S. Knutson Theatre.

"Of Mice and Men," based on John Steinbeck's 1937 novella takes place in Salinas, Calif. during the Great Depression. The plot follows two drifters, George and Lennie, who dream of living off the "fat of the land" once they have earned enough money as farm laborers to buy their own place.

Their plans go horribly awry, however, when Lennie's mental disability leads to a misunderstood encounter with the wife of his boss's son.

Throughout the play, Steinbeck examines George and Lennie's struggle for survival in the face of economic hardship,

discrimination and loneliness.

Steinebeck's characters in this production have a lot of depth, Garness said.

"John Steinbeck is a brilliant author," he said. "He put so much psychology into his characters."

Director Charlotte Guyette said she and the cast are working to bring out the dimension of the characters and make them as accessible as possible to the audience.

"There is a lot more dimension and edge (to the acting) than you would have found in the 1930s," she said.

Guyette said when choosing a play for this slot in the season, the committee looks for a production educators will be interested in, but students will be familiar with and enjoy.

This year, she said the play not only fit that criteria, but there were also talented actors who could play the demanding roles and have the physical attributes for the roles.

Seeing the characters develop during rehearsals is what Guyette said she enjoys most.

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